


Midnight

by madlysanecatlady



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Fluff, Gladnis, M/M, Midnight, tiny fics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-21
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-04-05 08:26:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14040207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madlysanecatlady/pseuds/madlysanecatlady
Summary: A few snippets in time, all taking place at midnight in various parts of the boys' journey.





	Midnight

Generally, when Ignis awoke in the middle of the night he would slide out of bed and get started on the backlog of work he generally had. Yet as he stared at the clock indicating it was just past midnight, Ignis couldn’t bring himself to move.

Part of it was that the heavy arm slung low over his hip was so comforting he simply never wanted to leave its reassuring weight. Another part was the sheer warmth pressed against his back and the hot breath spilling out onto the back of his neck, inviting him to stay nestled in the bed forever. Lips pressed against the back of his shoulder as Gladio shifted in his sleep, bringing a sleepy smile to Ignis’ face. Work could wait until morning; this was the only way he wanted to spend his night. He closed his eyes again, hearing a rumble of contentment sound out from Gladio as he settled back in to return to sleep and Ignis smiled again. It seemed Gladio agreed. This was the best kind of midnight.

 

-

 

It was rare that Gladio woke in the middle of the night. Generally, he slept like a log and woke up far after Ignis had left the bed. Waking up with the strategist slumbering in his arms was a welcome reward for being awake around midnight.

He took in the way Ignis’ hair fell over his forehead messily, fluttering if Ignis moved his head slightly in his sleep or let out a sleepy sigh. The worries and stresses of his waking day were absent from Ignis’ face, leaving it relaxed and looking younger than he ever did in the daylight. Pink lips were parted slightly, drawing in slow, steady breaths and letting them out against Gladio’s chest, tickling slightly on the deeper ones. Gladio smiled; he couldn’t think of any better reason to be awake at midnight than taking in these sights.

‘It’s rude to stare,’ Ignis mumbled, eyes fluttering open. He smiled. ‘What time is it?’

‘Just past midnight,’ Gladio kissed the top of his head. ‘Go back to sleep, Iggy. You never get enough.’

‘Mm, well, there is something else we could do besides sleep,’ Ignis grinned mischievously up at him. ‘We don’t get enough time for that either.’

Gladio shifted to better kiss him, feeling the last remnants of sleep fading away as a new alertness began to set in. Ignis’ head disappeared under the covers and Gladio smiled. Sleep was the _second_ best thing to do at midnight.

 

-

 

Noctis woke to the pattering of rain on the canvas of the tent. He checked the time on his phone and groaned. Why the hell was he awake? He still had _hours_ until Ignis would be shouting at him to get up. He heard a sleepy sigh from across the tent and rolled over, smiling when his eyes feel on Ignis.

He had crammed himself into a sleeping bag with Gladio, looking utterly content to be crushed against Gladio’s chest as he slept. Gladio had fallen asleep with his nose buried in Ignis’ hair, huge arms wrapped tightly around Ignis’ rather slenderer frame. Noctis really couldn’t help but smile. He usually saw them at their most serious, or in the very least generally professional. Seeing them cast that aside in nighttime comfort was really rather sweet. He hoped they would start to get comfortable enough to seek each other’s comfort out during the daytime as well. Noctis only wanted the best for them.

With that thought, he rolled back over and closed his eyes, ready to fall back asleep. It was midnight after all, it was time for him to get some sleep.

 

-

 

Driving at midnight used to be a nerve-wracking affair, Prompto noted as Noctis sped the Regalia down the road towards Lestallum. The new headlights Cindy had installed for them really did help in making him less jittery when they got caught on the road after dark.

He eyed the sleepy pair in the back seat and smiled. Apparently the headlights were making them feel safer too. Gladio’s head lolled on the backrest as he snoozed, one arm slung over the side of the door, the other ending with his fingers curled in Ignis’ hair, who slumbered with his head pillowed in Gladio’s lap.

Prompto had noticed more overt glances and touches between Noctis’ two retainers lately. He was happy for them. If they hadn’t clearly been a thing for so long, Prompto would’ve tried to set them up with each other; they really were a perfect match. He was personally quite touched that they trusted him and Noctis enough to let them be around for some of these intimate moments. It was sweet, and it gave Prompto the hope that they might make it through this whole nightmare, and they might even be happy in the end. He sighed contentedly, making a makeshift pillow out of his arms on the side of the car and laid his head down. Midnight moments like this reminded him how lucky he was to have found such friends as these, and he vowed to do whatever he could to make sure they all made it out of this alright.

 

-

 

‘It’s a few seconds to midnight, you ready?’ Gladio handed Ignis a champagne flute and snaked an arm around his waist.

‘I am now,’ Ignis trained sightless eyes in Gladio’s direction with a fond smile. ‘It’s tradition to ring in the new year with the one you love most, is it not?’

‘You know it,’ Gladio clinked their glasses together and drained his, reaching out for Ignis’ before setting them both aside as the countdown in the party-filled Lestallum streets began from ten seconds until the first second of the new year. They reached one and amid raucous applause, Gladio pulled Ignis into an embrace, slotting their lips together in familiar tradition.

It had been a while since anyone had felt like celebrating. Gladio and Ignis had thought they might never feel ready to again. But as the years ticked past, distancing them from Noctis and as they settled into the rebuilding world, reborn with the return of dawn, they felt their grief giving way to thanks. Noctis had selflessly given them their lives back. Scarred and tired though they were, Ignis and Gladio were finally settling back into them.

Ignis pulled away with a smile, leaning his forehead against Gladio’s chest contentedly. ‘Tell me about the party down there. Is it as nice as the ones we had in Insomnia?’

Gladio looked over the Leville balcony at the festivities happening in the streets below. ‘It’s better, Iggy. Everyone’s so happy to have something to celebrate again. It’s beautiful. I wish you could see it.’

‘I can see it through the tone of your voice,’ Ignis looked up at him seriously. He reached up and smoothed back Gladio’s hair, longer and more fun to play with now than it had been when they were in their twenties, before leaning up to kiss him again. If one kiss at midnight was a lucky tradition at new year’s, two must be even better. Ignis knew he was right when Gladio started steering him back inside and towards the bed. He knew they wouldn’t be asleep for several hours after the midnight ring-in, and he knew they would be tired in the morning, but it was worth it. Some of the best moments in life sometimes happened at midnight.


End file.
